The Great War
by MissAlyssaxxo
Summary: Yami lives in a kingdom that believes elves are an inferior race. His job is to capture,enslave and torment the magical creatures without a second thought. But Yami does have second thoughts especially when he meets the strange young elf Yugi.


Prologue

Long ago, in a kingdom known for its prosperity and good fortune, a cruel government was taking hold and the greed of men was pushing two races to the brink of war. When men found out that they could profit from the enslavement of the elfin race, they were quick to prepare forces and train in the ways of capturing and fighting the powerful elves. Our story begins at an academy build specifically for this purpose; and one soldier who would challenge that fabric of his civilization...

_ "You should all be proud that you managed to live through the Academy and attend your graduation. In a few short hours each of you will become an official member of the King's army and sent into battle against the dangerous scum that constantly threaten our kingdom. You will join the brave men fighting to save our people from the malicious plots of the Elfin. Those vile creatures who control the elements of god unnaturaly, speak to each other using thoughts, and live to unholy ages. They seek to destroy and kill you and your loved ones - and it will be your responsibility as soldiors of the Kingdom to stamp out their evil, one elf at a time. "_

Yami sighed and sat back, rolling his eyes as the Chief Gaurd continued his speech to the graduating soldiors. His words were dark and overdramatic, filled with pauses that were meant to prolong the 'honor' the soldiors were recieving by graduating and becoming gaurds to a kingdom filled with greed, slavery, crime and hatred .

Yami had attended the Academy for five years, he'd been brought to it after his village was burnt to the ground by a group of men hunting elves for bounty in the nearby forest. The men had been careless with putting out their campfires and the neglected flames quickly spread and destroyed miles of dry wood before the forest surrounding his village had been set ablaze. By the time anyone noticed the fire, it had completely encircled the small, hidden village. The fire had started at twilight - Yami had been deep in the woods playing with his friends Bakura and Marik when it started, which is how they had survived the blaze. The three boys had run back as fast as they could when they smelled the smoke, but the flames created an unbreakable wall that wouldn't let them in. The 11 year old boys listened, terrified as the flames reached their village and everyone trapped was burned alive. When the flames had finished burning themselves out and it was clear no one from their village had survived, the boys decided to find the nearest city and ask for help. They arrived four days later starving and covered in dirt in the city of Oreon, capital of Anhked. Collapsing in the center of town they were found by a group of soldiors who brought them to the Academy as new recruits in the growing war against the Elfin.

A kick in the shin and a nod from Bakura directed Yami's attention away from his memories and back to the stage.

_"Remember men, elves are the lowest form of life in this war. They are worth nothing -put on this earth to be used as slaves and laborers by mankind. You have all learned these things and more in your years at the Academy, you know how to identify an elf by their abnormal eyes and hair, and the abhorrid pointed ears. You know how to track and fight the demons. You know of the power that some have to control an element. But have any of you ever truely seen what your enemy is capable of?" _

The last sentence made Yami sit up straight and lean forward, _what could he mean by that? _Of course every man in this room had seen an elf, they were kept as slaves by the people of Oreon, and their short pale stature, jewel colered eyes, pointed ears and unnatural hair were unmistakable as the dirty and abused elves followed their masters, often led on leashes. The elves in the city were forced to wear small gold bracelets locked around their wrists. The gold blocked the elves from reaching their power to control an element, and though it was said that the gold burned like fire when it touched their wrist, the tight bracelets kept the elves from any hope of fighting back against humans. That was how the one sided war had started in the first place. When a single greedy human had realized the elves could not use their power when in contact with anything gold, he spread the secret and mankind began attacking and enslaving the elves who hated to fight back in the first place but lost all ability to as soon as a bracelt was snapped on their wrist . Yami guessed that mankind was scared jealous of the elves abilities - he did not believe that the beautiful moon pale creatures he saw being led down the street could ever be as evil as the Academy led their students to believe.

"_The elves you see in our fair city are broken and enlsaved. Their abilities are blocked by the bracelets they wear to protect our citezens from their evil intentions. The elves you will be hunting, however, will not be as safe. There will be no bracelets keeping them from fighting back - we have tried our best to train you for this, but a truely wild elf is a much different experience from any test you've had.. Observe!"_

Yami's crimsons eyes widened as the chief made a sweeping gesture to the right side of the stage as a large stone basin of water was rolled onto it, followed by a large iron cage. Yami gasped when he saw what was inside. There curled into a ball on the floor was an elf, his hands were bound and he was blindfolded and gagged, but Yami could see he was clearly struggling. The elf was dressed in magnificent robes of silk and jewels, but they were ripped and dirty with blood and holes. Yami watched as the chief approached the cage, pulling a knife from his belt. He reached between the bars of iron and easily lifted the small elf to its knees, cutting his blindfold, gag, and bound hands with one sweep of his knife. The startled elf gasped and fell forward, catching himself with his newly freed hands he stared at the bottom of his cage as though stunned.

_"This elf was caught fresh this morning" _Chief adressed the crowd, who were all staring at the elf with held breath, wondering what would happen next - it could be clearly seen that he was not wearing a bracelet.

_"He was the young ruler of the colony we discovered today deep in the forest. As you know the abilities of elves vary in strength and with their emotions, he and his brother are both extremely powerful. This creature has the ability to control water." _

Yami watched curiously as the elf raised his head as the Chief mentioned his brother. As usual the jeweled eye's of an elf caught Yami completely off gaurd. These were an incredibly bright, dark blue that shone like sapphires from behind his chocolate brown hair. His pale skin seemed to glow through the dirt covering his body and Yami had to admit he was absolutely beautiful, like all elves were.

"My brother? Mokuba? Where is he? What have you done with him!" He caught the elf's word's and felt a surge of sympathy for the small humiliated creature, How did it feel to be a former king trapped in a cage in front of a hundred humans that had been trained to kill and enslave your people?

"What have you done to him? Where is he, Mokuba? WHERE IS MY BROTHER?" His voice was rose to a yell, and Yami watched as the small elf struggled to stand.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HIM? IS HE HURT? WHERE IS HE, MOKUBA? MOKUBA!" The elf was on it's feet now, shaking the bars of his cage and slamming his body against the iron in an attempt to reach his captured brother. Yami's eye's narrowed in anger and he turned to Bakura who had his eyes lowered to the floor.

"They shouldn't be doing that to the poor thing" Bakura hissed and Marik who was sitting on the white haired boy's other side - nodded as well.

_"Shut up filth!" _Roared the Chief as he shoved the small elf so hard he tripped and slammed his head into the back of the cage. Yami winced and rubbed the back of his own spiked hair in sympathy.

_"Do you really want to know where your brother is?"_ The chief sneered and reached his hand into the brown leather sack tied to a belt around his waist and pulled out a small, sharply pointed blood soaked ear. The cruel man chuckled and threw the ear into the cage at the elf, who gagged and stumbled away from it, backing into the corner nearest the water basin. Still retching, he curled up and grabbed at his own ears, choking out

"N-no, that isn't his. You're lying, YOU'RE LYING TO ME!" His clenched fists slammed into the floor of his small prison and Yami watched in amazement as the massive amount of water behind the small creature rose in a huge jet towards the ceiling. He watched the water change into sharp icicles and impale the ceiling with sparkling, deadly beauty. It was an amazing display of power and it made Yami feel sick to his stomach as he watched the elf continue to shake and retch over the pointed ear resting on the floor of his prison. _Does it really belonged to his brother?_

_"Elf." _ Chief chuckled and looked down on the huddled mass in the cage.

_"Elf!" _The creature raised his head and glared at the chief with hatred flashing in his eyes.

_"Return the water to its basin, and I'll bring out your brother. You were right, I was lying."_

The graduating men roared in laughter at the joke their twisted chief had made. Yami grimiced and watched the elf look at the chief with pure disgust written on his face. He glanced up at the icicles he had sent flying to the ceiling. With a wave of his hand the water instantly melted and formed a thin twisting stream back to the stone bucket, Yami was amazed that not a single drop fell to the floor.

_"Hold out your wrist filth."_

"But you said you were going to bring Mok-"

_"SHUT UP ELF!" _Chief smashed his fist through the bar and punched him in the stomach, then grabbed the elf king's wrist and pulled it through the bars. Reaching into his sack again, the man brought out a tiny gold bracelt and latched it to the elf's wrist, loking it securly. The creature screamed as the gold burned his pale skin, and he scratched desperatly at the bracelet, gasping in pain.

_"Control yourself savage, it'll stop in a minute" _The Chief's jeers earned another round of cheers from the soldiors, and Yami ground his teeth together. he didn't care how long he had stayed at the Academy, he simply couldn't believe this kind of behavior toward any living thing was okay.

Tears had formed in the young elf's eyes from the metal burning his skin, but his voice was even and deadly when he said,

"Where is my brother?"

Chief gestured again to his silent gaurds and a small elf was lead onstage by a thick leather leash. Yami assumed it was Mokuba, one because this elf already had a gold bracelt on, and two because his robes were similar to the elf's in the cage. The man holding Mokuba's leash held a thick whip in his other hand, and when the boy tried to run to his brother in the iron cage, he raised it threateningly.

"SETO!" The smaller elf yelled, and reached out a hand for his brother, stretching the leash as far as he could "Brother, what have they done to you? Why are you in a cage?"

"Mokuba!" The elf called Seto's eyes shone with light as he saw his brother alive and well.

Chief turned to the audience and continued his adress.

_"And now you will see the affects of the gold braccelets on the elves. You recall the extroidinary power the one in the cage had before? Observe... Seto?"_

The elf in the cage raied his sapphire eyes and glared at the man in front of him.

"Yes?"

"_I want you to move that water again for me. Do anything you like with it. Kill us all if it suits you. But if you don't something... unfavorable may happen to Mokuba." _ He reached over and rubbed a hand through the younger elf's thick ebony hair, grabbing it roughly as the boy tried to jerk away.

The older elf nodded through clenched teeth, and turned to look at the water in the basin. After a few seconds of staring at the clean surface, Seto's eyes widened in horror.

"I- I can't!"

_"What was that?" _Chief motioned for the man holding Mokuba to raise his whip.

"I - I can't move the water! Nothing is happening!"

_"What a shame. Are you ABSOLUTELY sure about that?" _Chief shoved the smaller elf to his knees and stepped away nodding to the soldior holding him, who raised his whip and cracked it across the small creature's back. Mokuba cried out and his brother whipped around, snarling like an animal.

"DON'T TOUCH HIM!"

_"Move the water"_

"I'm trying!"

*CRACK*

_"Try harder, move the water, now."_

"I can't, you're hurting him! I don't understand!"

*CRACK*

"Stop, please! It should be going everywhere, I- I can't reach my magic..."

*CRACK*

_"Don't you want to help your brother Seto?"_

The elf called Seto fell to his knees in despair and covered his face with his hands_. _Yami shut his eyes, he couldn't watch this torture anymore. And his classmates roaring in laughter and satisfaction at the elf's pain were enough to make him want to kill every human in this building. _How can anyone let this cruelty happen?_

_*CRACK*_

"Big brother!"

*CRACK*

"Seto, help me!"

*CRACK*

Mokuba was sobbing loudly now, blood seeping into his torn robes and onto the stage.

*CRACK*

*CRACK*

*CRACK*

*CRACK*

Seto was once again shaking and covering his ears, desperatly trying to make the water in the basin do as he was telling it to, to save his little brother. But it wasn't working. The water in the basin was as smooth as glass and Seto began to pant from the effort of trying to rach his blocked magic. Chief finally motioned for his gaurd to lower his whip and sneered at the elf.

_"Not so powerful now, are we KING Seto?" _Chief sneered the title mockingly into the elf's face with obvious disgust and spat at the shaking creature in his cage. Turning back to his graduating soldiors, he raised his arms and soaked up the roaring applause. The only poeple silent and glaring in disgust were Yami, Bakura, and Marik who could hardly contain their rage enough to stay silent, but after all they HAD to graduate in order to get away from this bullshit academy. When the applause died down, The chief continued his speech.

_"Now that our little demonstration is over, you realize how truely disgusting these creatures are." _ He gestured to the weeping Mokuba, huddled on the floor, and his brother, shaking with rage in his cage.

"_These two would normally be brought straight to market and sold to the highest bidders,but today we decided to spice things up a little in honor of your graduation. Since the members of this class will soon be leaving the Academy to put their talents to use in the outside world, having an elf could be extemely helpful. They can be used to set traps, cook, labor, and they are extremely silent and can fit into small spaces, good for stealth attacks. That is why, today little Mokuba and Seto will be given to the two students graduating with highest marks today. Everyone else, can just buy their own." _ He smiled at himself indulgently.

_"Now, the two lucky students are... Yami Mutou, congratulations! Please take Mokuba from the stage after the ceremony, and the second highest marks - and therefore Seto, go to Keith Howard." _

Yami shuddered when he heard who poor Seto was being handed to, and as glad as he was to have saved Mokuba from being sold at a slave auction, he wished he could save the elf's brother as well. Keith Howard was notoriously in love with hating the Elifin and everything about their kind, so Yami knew that Seto was in for abuse and hard work. He hated that he couldn't do anything to help the dethroned king but promise to take care of his brother.

The rest of the ceremony passed in a blur, and as Yami stepped onstage to recieve his helmet, shield, and sword (His weapon of choice, Bakura preferred knnifes and daggers, and Marik recieved a bow and phoneix feather arrows) He swallowed the lump in his throat and forced a heartfelt thank you to the Chief of Guards for giving him such a gift and allowing him an education and a future. Forcing himself not to look into the sapphire blue eyes of Seto, who had been taken out of his cage and leashed beside his brother; he took the tether of the smaller elf who had his head down, tears obviously still flowing down his cheeks and nodded to the guard to let go as he separated the pair and took the smaller sibling offstage. _God I hate myself right now_. He continued to berate himself as he sat back in his seat and told the small elf to sit on the ground beside him until the ceremony was over. He watched as Keith walked across the stage to recieve his helmet, shield, and club, then grab Seto forcefully and drag him offstage, taking such large steps the elf was amost dragged and had to jog to keep up with the human's strides. Once offstage Keith shoved all of his graduation presents into the elf's arms and smacked him across the head so he stumbled forward, towards Keith's seat. Howard instructed the elf to stand behind his seat for the remainder of the ceremony then sat down. Yami watched Mokuba stare at his brothers rigid back with tears running down his cheeks, and slowly reached out to pet his long shining black hair.

"You love your brother very much don't you?" Yami whispered, and Gasped when mokuba finally turned his face to him. His eyes were the color of pure silver and shone like the steel of his sword as the small elf nodded.

"I'm sorry you have to be separated, but I swear if I can think of any way to save your brother and reunite you than we will do it. Understand?"

The elf's eyebrows wrinkled in confusion - he clearly hadn't been expecting this behavior from a human. He searched Yami's honest expression and when he found no trace of a lie he smiled slowly and whispered,

"Thank you."

Yami nodded and looked back up to the stage, where Bakura was recieving his set of daggers, knifes and throwing stars. He knew that tomorrow he, Marik and Bakura were partnered up for their hunting mission and he would have to explain his plan to reunite the elf brothers to the both of them, Yami knew they would understand and would want to help as well.

Mokuba tugged at Yami's panats, and the startled soldior looked down at the elf's smiling face.

"My brother and I can still speak to each other through thoughts you know." He whispered, and Yami smiled, glad.

"He says he noticed that you were among the only ones not laughing and clapping at us onstage, and he's very grateful that I was given to you, he believes you'll keep your word and help us. Since my big bbrother is always right, I'm going to trust you to. " Yami felt his heart break as he looked into the pretty little's elf's face, which was so full of hope, smiling in front of him. He looked up at the older elf, who had been given to one of the cruelest students in the school and wondered if he would truely be able to do anything to help.


End file.
